Summary

  • Blizzard is already planning the future of the Diablo franchise for the long haul.
  • Despite past wait times between Diablo games, long-term planning hints at exciting prospects for fans.

Diablo boss Rod Fergusson has commented on the future of the popular action RPG franchise, indicating that plans are in motion for further down the line. Given Diablo's ongoing popularity, it won't be a massive surprise for players to hear that Blizzard is already thinking about the future.

The most recent game in the series is Diablo 4, which is one of the most successful iterations to date. The 2023 title remains one of the best action RPGs on the market, with frequent seasonal content keeping players engaged over a long period of time. More recently, Diablo 4 has faced some criticism over a disappointing 2025 roadmap, although the game is broadly still heading in a positive direction, having made great strides from its launch period.

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Speaking as part of a chain interview with Game File, Diablo boss Rod Fergusson was asked about "the next big inflection point and installment for Diablo" by Riot Games co-founder, Marc Merrill. While not giving too much away, Fergusson said, "We're here for the long haul. We've been doing long-range planning recently. And I've created a roadmap - a 10-year roadmap... It was actually a 12-year [roadmap]... We’re focused on what players want…I can’t tell you much more than that." While the primary focus is delivering current Diablo 4 updates, it's good to hear that Blizzard is already looking further into the future.

Diablo Boss Rod Fergusson Confirms Plans Are in Motion For the Future

As a franchise, Diablo has typically made players wait between games. Diablo 3 arrived 12 years after Diablo 2, and Diablo 4 was an 11-year wait from the launch of Diablo 3. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it allows Blizzard to polish and produce great Diablo games each time. Fergusson's comment regarding a 10-year roadmap may indicate that he knows when the next Diablo game will be released, even if it's still a very long time away.

Pulling back to the immediate future of Diablo 4, there's a lot for players to look forward to this year. Later this month, Blizzard will launch Diablo 4's Season 8, assuming there are no further delays. The PTR feedback indicates that Season 8 will be much more difficult than previous Seasons, with Blizzard believing that the grind had become far too easy to reach endgame content. The classic Diablo 3 enemy, Belial, will return upon Season 8's launch on April 29.

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9 /10

Diablo 4
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Action RPG
Hack and Slash
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Systems
PlayStation-1 Xbox-1 PC-1
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Top Critic Avg: 88 /100 Critics Rec: 93%
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Released
June 5, 2023
ESRB
Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
Developer(s)
Blizzard
Publisher(s)
Blizzard
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WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION
DIGITAL
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Engine
Proprietary Engine
Genre(s)
Action RPG, Hack and Slash